According to a letter from the Maryland Department of Legislative Service’s Office of Audits- the Allegany County Board of Education failed to adequately address 11 of 16 findings discovered in a 2007 audit. According to the letter, in 2007 a number of suggestions were made to the board designed to improve procedures and controls in fiscal operations. Among the findings in ’07 were: a need to enhance internal controls and accountability in payroll processing; the board was significantly behind in processing its Medicaid reimbursement requests; consistent deficits in food service operations; and a need to better address procurement matters and the use of credit cards. A 2012 audit showed that of the 16 findings, a total of 11 remain an issue. Allegany County Board of Education Director of Finance Randy Bittinger was a guest on WCBC’s “Dave Norman Show” to discuss the issue Monday morning. He was quick to point out that the issues raised by the state audit are simply suggestions- and they come with no penalty attached for not adhering to them. He added that often times it’s a case of the Department recommending the local system taking steps that exceed the existing state measures….